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More about PortlandPortland started as a spot known as "The Clearing" which was on the banks of the Willamette River about half-way between Oregon City and Fort Vancouver. In 1843, William Overton saw great commercial potential for this land; his only problem was that he lacked the quarter needed to file a land claim. So, he struck a bargain with his partner Asa Lovejoy: for 25Â¢, Overton would share his claim to the 640 acre (2.6 kmÂ²) site. Bored with clearing trees and building roads, Overton sold his half of the claim to Francis W. Pettygrove. When it came time to name their new town, Pettygrove and Lovejoy each wanted to name it after his home town. They settled the argument with a coin toss. Pettygrove won, and named it after Portland, Maine; had Lovejoy won, he intended to name it after Boston, Massachusetts. In its early years, Portland existed in the shadow of Oregon City, the territorial capital 12 miles (19 km) upstream on the falls of the Willamette. However, Portland was located at the Willamettes head of navigation, the furthest point inland one could reliably reach by ship. This gave it a key advantage over its older peer. It also triumphed over early rivals like Milwaukie and Sellwood. By 1850 Portland had approximately 800 inhabitants, a steam sawmill, a log cabin hotel, and a newspaper, called the Weekly Oregonian. Portland was the major port in the Pacific Northwest for much of the 19th century, until the 1890s when direct railroad access between the deep water harbor in Seattle and points east by way of Stampede Pass were built. Goods could then be transported from the northwest coast to inland cities without needing to navigate the dangerous bar at the mouth of the Columbia. Like other west coast ports such as San Francisco, California, Astoria, Oregon, and Port Townsend, Washington, Portland was home to frequent acts of shanghaiing. Tunnels under city blocks stretching for blocks from the Willamette River, although built for legitimate business reasons, became known as shanghai tunnels because of their purported use in such kidnappings. Portland Demographics As of the census of 2000, there are 529,121 people residing in the city, organized into 223,737 households and 118,356 families. The population density is 1,521/kmÂ² (3,939.2/miÂ²). There are 237,307 housing units at an average density of 682.1/kmÂ² (1,766.7/miÂ²). The racial makeup of the city is 77.91% White, 6.64% African American, 1.06% Native American, 6.33% Asian, 0.38% Pacific Islander, 3.55% from other races, and 4.15% from two or more races. 6.81% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race. Portland is becoming increasingly diverse. Recent trends have more young people moving into the city as older, more established white families with children move to the suburbs. Although the overwhelming majority of the citys population is still White, 60% of people moving to Oregon are minorities. However, though the population of the city is increasing, the total population of children is diminishing, which has put pressure on the public school system to close schools. A recent New York Times story noted that Portland is now educating fewer children than it did in 1925, and the city will have to close the equivalent of three to four elementary schools each year for the next decade. Portlands public school system has remained rather segregated. Three of its high schools (Cleveland, Lincoln and Wilson) are over 80% white, while three other high schools (Jefferson, Marshall and Roosevelt) are over 70% non-white. The remaining four schools are more ethnically balanced. Out of 223,737 households, 24.5% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 38.1% are married couples living together, 10.8% have a female householder with no husband present, and 47.1% are non-families. 34.6% of all households are made up of individuals and 9% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.3 and the average family size is 3. In the city the population is spread out with 21.1% under the age of 18, 10.3% from 18 to 24, 34.7% from 25 to 44, 22.4% from 45 to 64, and 11.6% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 35 years. For every 100 females there are 97.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 95.9 males. The median income for a household in the city is $40,146, and the median income for a family is $50,271. Males have a reported median income of $35,279 versus $29,344 reported for females. The per capita income for the city is $22,643. 13.1% of the population and 8.5% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 15.7% of those under the age of 18 and 10.4% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line. Oregon has a 9% income tax which tends to suppress accurate reporting. Figures delineating the income levels based on race are not available at this time. Today...Mostly cloudy in the morning...Then partly sunny. Patchy fog in the morning. Highs around 50. Southeast wind 5 to 10 mph increasing to 10 to 15 mph in the afternoon. Tonight...Rain likely in the evening...Then rain at Times overnight. Lows in the upper 30s to mid 40s. Southwest wind 15 to 20 mph Decreasing after midnight. Saturday...Mostly cloudy. A chance of showers in the morning...Then isolated showers in the afternoon. Highs around 50. Light wind. Saturday Night...Partly cloudy in the evening...Then mostly cloudy. Areas of fog. Lows in the low to mid 30s. Light wind. Sunday...Mostly cloudy in the morning...Then mostly sunny. Areas of fog in the morning. Highs around 50. Northeast wind 5 to 10 mph. Sunday Night...Mostly clear. Lows 35 to 40. Monday...Partly sunny. Highs 50 to 55. Monday Night...Mostly cloudy with a chance of rain. Lows around 40. Tuesday...Mostly cloudy with a chance of rain. Highs 50 to 55. Tuesday Night...Mostly cloudy with a chance of showers. Lows around 40. Wednesday...Mostly cloudy with a slight chance of showers. Highs around 50. Wednesday Night...Partly cloudy. Lows 35 to 40. Thanksgiving Day...Partly cloudy with a slight chance of rain. Highs around 50. Powered by HAMweather Copyright © 2003 HAMweather, LLC, all rights reserved.

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